English 10– Summer assignment

For the summer you will be responsible for reading 2 books. Thunderdog, you will need to get on your own. It is available in both public libraries, or for purchase. That Was Then, This is Now will be given to you along with this packet. Both titles are available on Learning Ally and have been loaded into your account. If you need log-in information, please secure this information before June 23. Any questions email me at

Part 1:

Read One school One book - Thunder Dog: The True Story of a Blind Man, His Guide Dog, and the Triumph of Trust by Michael Hingson and Susy Flory

Write 2 questions you would like to ask the author

1.

2.

Part 2: That Was Then This is Now

S.E. Hinton, author of That Was Then, This is Now, said that she intended the novel to be a story about people “growing out and away from each other.” Explain how this theme is developed throughout the story.

Possible relationships to consider for the body paragraphs may be

  • Sibling relationships
  • Friendships
  • Parent Child
  • Intimate relationships

Quote Collection

For this page – circle the relationship you want to concentrate on, then find 2 quotes that illustrate 2 examples each of how the relationship is close, and how the relationship grows apart. Be sure to write the page number down for each example.

Sibling:
Mark & Bryon
Cathy & M&M / Closeness
1.
------
2. / Growning apart
1.
------
2.
friends
Marc & Bryon
Bryon and Cathy
Charlie & Marc & Bryon / Closeness
1.
------
2. / Growning apart
1.
------
2.
Parent child
Charlie & Marc & Bryon
Bryon’s mom & Marc and Bryon
M&m Cathy & Father / Closeness
1.
------
2. / Growning apart
1.
------
2.
Intimate relationships
Bryon and Cathy
Bryon and Angela
Marc & Bryon / Closeness
1.
------
2. / Growning apart
1.
------
2.

That Was Then, This is Now

Study Questions

Chapter 1&2

  1. Who is telling the story? What is he like?
  2. Who is Mark? Why do he and Bryon need $3? How do they get it?
  3. Mark and Bryon get into a fight with someone. Who? Why?
  4. Why do Mark and Bryon go to the hospital? How do they get there?
  5. Who is telling the story? What is he like?
  6. Who is Mark? Why do he and Bryon need $3? How do they get it?
  7. Mark and Bryon get into a fight with someone. Who? Why?
  8. Why do Mark and Bryon go to the hospital? How do they get there?

Have you ever been in a situation like the one Mike was in? (Have you ever been attacked- verbally or physically?)

Do you see his point about not hating the people who beat him up- or would you feel differently?

Chapter 3&4

  1. What does Bryon borrow from Charlie? Why?
  2. What does Mark lend Bryon for the dance?
  3. Why doesn’t Bryon like Curtis?
  4. Why does Cathy say she wishes her father would “leave M & M alone”?
  5. How does Mark get hurt?
  6. Are Mark and Bryon brothers?
  7. While Mark recuperates from his stitches, he and Bryon spend the afternoon talking about the “good times” they’ve had. List three incidents they remember.
  1. Who says, “That was then, this is now”? Why?
  2. What is a “Soc”?
  3. How does Mark get into trouble after seeing his probation officer?

Chapters 5&6

  1. Why is Charlie in a bad mood? What is a draft notice?
  2. Compare Cathy and Angela.
  3. Where does Bryon get the money he needs to lure someone into playing pool?
  4. Charlie says happily, “They’re not goin’ to take me.” (pg.73) Who are “they”?
  5. How does Charlie get killed?
  6. What is it that “Mark didn’t understand and Cathy did” (p.80)?
  7. What happens to the Texans at the trial? How does Bryon feel about the verdict?
  8. How does Cathy affect Bryon’s friendship with Mark?
  9. Why is Cathy worried about M&M?
  10. Why does Mark punch the boy in the Corvette?
  11. What happens to M&M? Why is Cathy crying?

Chapter 7&8

  1. What is the “Ribbon”? Why do Bryon and Cathy go up and down the Ribbon every night for a week?
  1. What job does Bryon get?
  2. Who is Angela?
  3. What does Mark do to Angela? Why?
  4. List three “bad things” that have happened to Mark in his life.
  5. Why does Mark take Bryon to the building with the “Love” sign?
  6. Who is “Baby Freak”?
  7. Why does Bryon go to Terry Jones’s place?
  8. Why do Tim and Curly beat up Bryon?
  9. Who tells Mark not to go after Tim and Curly? Why?

Chapters 9&10

  1. Why does Mark feel guilty about Bryon’s getting beat up?
  2. Why does Bryon go to the cemetery?
  3. What does the “hippie” mean when he tells Bryon and Cathy to talk to M&M’s “travel agent”? (pg.131)
  4. Why is M&M talking about spiders?
  5. Who carries M&M into the hospital? How?
  6. What does the doctor say about M&M’s recovery?
  7. Why is Bryon looking under Mark’s mattress? What does he find?
  8. Why does Bryon call the police?
  9. Does Mark feel that he is to blame for what has happened to M&M? Should he?
  10. What does Mark do when he finds out the police are coming?

Do you think Bryon is doing the right thing by calling the police? Why do you think he does it?

What else could Mark have done? What would you have done?

Chapter 11

  1. How does Bryon treat Cathy when she says that she is sorry about what happened to Mark?
  1. How have Bryon’s feelings toward Cathy changed? Why?
  2. What sentence is handed down at Mark’s trial?
  3. How does Bryon do in school during the months after Mark’s trial?
  4. How has M&M changed?
  5. Who is Cathy dating now?
  6. How does Bryon treat Angela when she comes into the store?
  7. Why does it take so long for Bryon to see Mark?
  8. How has Mark changed?
  9. How much time has passed since Mark’s arrest and Bryon’s telling of the story?

Bryon wonders, “What if I had found out about Mark some other time, when I wasn’t half out of my mind with worry about Cathy? What if I hadn’t met her in the first place, would I still have grown away from Mark? What if M&M had had a good trip instead of a bad one? What if someone else had turned Mark in- would there still be hope for him?” Speculate about all of these “what ifs.” What do you think would have happened in each case?